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My great uncle with a stickpin. ©Corbisimages.com |
Circa 1890, the wearing of stickpins with a tie was considered the norm regardless of your stature or profession. The tradition started much earlier with the wearing of pins through ascots, and morphed along with popular neckwear. Stickpins add a little "bling" to your outfit, but in a refined way that chunky gold necklaces and diamond studs in your ears or nose just can't match....
Stickpins can be confused with ascot pins and women's hat pins, so the buyer must be careful. Here's how you tell the difference:
- Stickpins are typically about two to three inches long. If you find one that is longer than three inches, you could be looking at a ladies hat pin. If you find one shorter than two inches, you may be looking at an ascot pin. (Ascot pins may be worn as stickpins, so this is less of a concern.)
- If you look at a stickpin from the side, you should see the pin portion turn 90 degrees before it reaches the ornament. If it's straight, you have a woman's hat pin. Give it to the woman of your choosing, or pass on purchasing it.
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Stickpin Collector's Book |
Some tips on wearing them: First, if you plan to stick it through your tie, be sure to wear a woven tie! Woven ties hide the holes that stickpins make, and can handle the stress of being stuck multiple times so long as you're careful. I've always preferred woven ties, but I'll cover that topic another time. If you insist on wearing printed ties, or if you don't like the look of the stickpin in your tie, another option is to wear them in your jacket lapel.
You can find stickpins in flea markets, on eBay, in antique stores, etc. Prices can range from $20 to several hundred dollars. Know what you're buying - several of the stones can be glass or paste (fine, so long as you pay accordingly) and the pins can range from steel to gold plate to solid gold up to about 18 carats. Again, I'd suggest you get the book mentioned above and do some reading and research on past eBay items before shelling out more than $40 or so. But try it out and have fun - it will definitely help you bouge things up a bit and stand out in the crowd.
--A
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Assorted Stickpins |
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